Education

All children learn at different rates and many will need a bit of extra help at some point during their time in education. A child has special educational needs (SEN) if he or she has a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made. Special educational provision is when a child needs extra help over and above what is usual. SEN can be in 4 different areas:

Cognition and learning e.g. dyslexia

Communication and interaction e.g. autism

Sensory impairment and/or physical

Social, emotional and mental health problems

Some children's special educational needs are clear from a very early age, for others these will emerge as they journey towards adulthood. Some children who have SEN will make sufficient progress so the extra help is no longer needed.

In this section we look at identifying the educational support that is available at key points in a child/young person's education. Please click on the link you wish to view, depending on age:

There are a range of material and resources available, which have been designed to support the transitions of children and young people with SEND at the various stages of their educational journey towards adulthood. To access these resources please click on the following link: Transitions Support

Special Educational Needs (SEN) Support

Mainstream schools (including academies), colleges and early years providers must follow a code set down by the government to make sure that children with SEN have their needs met. The code is called ‘Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years'. This document can be accessed under downloads on the right side of this page.

Children are supported at a level called ‘SEN support’, where schools follow an Assess-Plan-Do-Review cycle. An education setting may seek expertise from other professionals, review more often and/or provide more detailed support for children with higher levels of need. This can be done at this level of ‘SEN support’.

Additional support (including funding) can be put in place for children and young people attending these mainstream settings. The law states that these settings must make their ‘best endeavours’ to make special educational provision available. This simply means that the law supports schools, colleges and early years providers to be inclusive and supportive. The SEND Code of Practice gives detailed guidance about how to make sure children and young people are well supported.

For more information about what support is available in mainstream schools, colleges and Early Years settings, please see the relevant section above for your child’s age. There are also links to relevant information on the right side of this page.

Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessments and EHC Plans

For a small number of children and young people with complex special educational needs, an EHC needs assessment may be necessary. This is considered when it may be necessary for a child to have support which is only available with an EHC plan. The new EHC pathway has replaced the former statutory assessment and statement process (see below). Some children with an EHC plan attend a mainstream school and some attend more specialist settings.

Whether you are a county or city resident you can contact the Ask Us Nottinghamshire service for advice and support about working through the EHC process. Ask Us can also help if you are unhappy with a decision, and give initial advice on how to appeal or make use of the local Disagreement Resolution process. For further advice on how to resolve a disagreement please see the related advice at the bottom of this page.

If you are a young person aged 16 -25 in school or college and have a complaint or dispute about the education provision you are receiving and need help to sort these problems out you can access guidance on this by clicking on the link called 'SEND Complaints: A Guide for Young People In Education', which is available under downloads on the right side of this page.

Home to Education Travel Assistance

Nottinghamshire County Council has a transport policy for under 16 home to school transport and post-16 transport, which include arrangements for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities. You can access these policies through downloads on the right side of this page.

You can access further information on travel assistance through the following link: Travel Assistance

Ofsted/CQC Inspections

The Department for Education (DfE) has asked Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission to inspect all local areas in England over a 5 year period (from May 2016). The purpose of these inspections are to ensure that the arrangements that are being made to identify and support children and young people with SEN and disability are effective. You can find out more about the background to these inspections by accessing the DfE guidance called 'Local Area SEND Inspections: Guidance for Families', which can be found under the external links on the right hand side of this page.

Education, Health and Care Plan Pathway

Related Advice

How to Resolve a DisagreementWherever possible we want to enable issues and disagreements to be discussed and resolved at the earliest opportunity. This may be an informal chat with a teacher, social worker or health professional initially. Schools, colleges and services will have their own published policies and/or guidance…

BullyingBullying can take place anywhere - in schools, in the wider community and on-line. It can be particularly distressing not only to the person being bullied but also the individual's family. Bullying is often targeted at certain groups of people, perhaps because of their disability,…

ExclusionsChildren with special needs are at extra risk of being excluded at some point in their school life. Sometimes it is only when your child faces exclusion that you realise they have special needs that are not being met at school. This can be worrying…

External Links

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